Haggai ministered among the jews who had returned to judea after some 70 years of exile in babylon. In particular haggai in conjunction with zechariah was given the task of stirring up the enthusiasm to rebuild the temple of the lord and is the. The prophets haggai and zechariah played an important role in encouraging the jewish people and their leaders zerubbabel, the governor of judah, and the high priest joshua to return to their homeland and rebuild the jerusalem temple following the babylonian exile. The prophecies of haggai are concerned mainly with rebuilding the temples after the babylonian captivity. The object of the prophet was generally to urge the people to proceed with the rebuilding of the temple. In this book, haggai challenges israel after the exile to remain faithful to their god and rebuild the temple. The short prophecy of haggai is very important on the prophetic scene.
Haggai quizzes there are 20 questions on this topic. If you look on the back of your handout, you see outlined there the preexilic, the exilic and the postexilic prophets. To portray gods future plans for his people, zechariah uses a series of. This structure will receive attention presently, but for now it is important to consider various viewpoints as to the origin and growth of the composition. A team of editors takes feedback from our visitors to keep trivia as up to date and as accurate as possible. In greek the book is titled aggaios, a transliteration from the hebrew, from which we get our english spelling of haggai. The book of haggai is narrative history and prophetic oracle. Apart from obadiah, haggai is the shortest book in the ot, but its teachings are none the less significant.
There are also chronological prophecies in the book of haggai which dovetail with chronological prophecies in the following book of zechariah. The persian king cyrus encouraged the captive people to return to their country of origin and to rebuild the jerusalem temple so that their god would once again have a house to live in ezra 1. Haggai spoke his message to the jews after they returned to jerusalem to. What are our priorities, and why is it so important to get them right. We get preoccupied with the actions and forget about. Haggai is among the most carefully and precisely dated books in the entire bible. Haggai is the second shortest book in the old testament next to obadiah and it was probably written about 520 bc by the author haggai no one contests that he is the prophet that wrote the book its right there in the beginning and its a very interesting haggai may have been among the captives who were alive in jerusalem before. Haggai clearly shows the consequences of disobedience 1.
The book of haggai is a book of the tanakh hebrew bible and of the old testament, written by the prophet haggai. Haggai is the tenth of the minor prophets, the last 12 books of the old testament. These people say, the time has not yet come to rebuild the lord s house. The book which bears his name is very short, and contains no detailed information about its author. Haggai introduction commentary commentary critical and. Haggai spoke his message to the jews after they returned to jerusalem to rebuild the temple of god that had been destroyed by the babylonians. It was written in 520 bce, some 18 years after cyrus had taken the kingdom of babylon and made a law in 538 bce, so that the captive jews could return to judea. He was an older man looking back on the glories of his nation, a prophet imbued with a.
Book of haggai overview insight for living ministries. Haggai is the second shortest book in the old testament obadiah is shorter, and is quoted by the new testament once compare heb. The book of haggai consists of four addresses of the prophet hag. From these facts, the picture of haggai begins to come into focus. Amazing facts 247 television station featuring the best in bible study streamed lived and on. After 70 years of captivity, persian king cyrus, issued a decree in 538 b. It provides a short synopsis of this biblical book of the scripture with reference with interesting points or lessons to be learned from the.
Key personalities are haggai, zerubbabel, and joshua. The people felt discouraged because their temple looked unimpressive, but haggai reminded them to keep working and hope in gods promise of a new jerusalem. As was the case with haggai, god commissioned zechariah to urge the people to complete the construction of the temple. Like many other books in the old testament, the book of zephaniah has a combination of history and prophesy. Haggai 1 niv a call to build the house of the lord.
The books of ezra and nehemiah are also key literary sources on the restoration of the jewish religious community. Because his name means festal one, it is suggested that haggai was born on a feast day. The book of haggai introduction to the book of haggai in the bible. The book of haggai contains messages delivered by the prophet haggai, and thus it is reasonable to consider haggai its author. Considering the small size of haggai, there are numerous differences between the received hebrew text and the septuagint. The book of haggai offers future hope and encourages. The book of haggai, the 10th of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets. Haggai with book summary versebyverse bible commentary. Cyrus also wanted the temple in jerusalem to be built, so that the worship there could be begun again. Haggai is the most precisely dated book of the bible, with the dates of each. How to remember what haggais all about overviewbible. The book was written by the prophet haggai about 520 bc and is one of the shortest books in the old testament, having only two chapters. The book of haggai reminds the exiled rebuilders of jerusalem to give god their primary allegiance and not rebel against the covenant like their ancestors. The book of haggai comprises four short oracles delivered by the prophet himself, written in the third person sing.
It is also the most precisely dated among the other books in the old testament. It is about rebuilding jerusalem and why it was important for the jews to rebuild the temple. He probably was one of the jewish exiles of the tribes judah, benjamin, and levi who returned under zerubbabel, the civil head of the people, and joshua, the high priest, 536 b. The specific mention of the second year of darius places the book in the year 520 b. He called them to reverence and glorify god by building the temple in spite of local and official opposition. Next time someone asks you what the book of haggai is all about, just make this face and say, zerubbabel, y u no finish temple. Intro to haggai biblica the international bible society. Media referencing the book of haggai amazing facts. Chapter first comprehends the first address 211 and its effects 1215. The few passages which speak of him refer simply to the occasion on which he had to deliver a divine message in jerusalem, during the second year of the reign of the persian king, darius i 520 b. Haggai pastor david legge 4 haggai is the tenth of the twelve minor prophets. Interesting facts about haggai barnes bible charts meaning. All content from kiddle encyclopedia articles including the article images and facts can be freely used under attributionsharealike license, unless stated otherwise. Obedience brings the encouragement and strength of the spirit of god.
Aggaeus was a hebrew prophet during the building of the second temple in jerusalem, and one of the twelve minor prophets in the hebrew bible and the author of the book of haggai. Old testament tanakh this category is for questions and answers related to haggai, as asked by users of. With the fall of babylon about 19 years earlier in 539 b. Memorize facts about the books of the bible with flash cards. This probable royal ancestry made him somewhat unusual among all the other hebrew. He is given no introduction other than the prophet cf. The book of haggai was written in approximately 520 b. It is a postexilic book, meaning it was written after post the captivity exile in babylon. Content is available under the creative commons attributionsharealike license. Unlike haggai, however, zechariah thought that the rebuilding of the temple was the necessary prelude to the eschatological age, the arrival of which was imminent. They were delivered on the first day of the sixth month hag 1. When the people give priority to god and his house, they are blessed rather than cursed cf.
He is known for his prophecy in 520 bce, commanding the jews to rebuild the temple. In hebrew the book is titled ygj after the name of the prophet which probably meant my feast 1. The book of haggai is the first of the three postexile prophets. The book of haggai and chapters 18 of zechariah appear to be part of the same. In the book of haggai, god refers to zerubbabel as my servant as king david was, and says he will make him as a signet ring, as king jehoiachin was haggai. The second prophecy 19, which was delivered a month after the first. The people started the building project well but soon became distracted by their own wealth, and the work on the temple stopped. Zephaniah, the prophet who authored this book, most likely had a royal lineage.
Haggai was a prophet of the remnant of israel and judah that remained after the 70 years in captivity, and his task was to instruct, encourage and also rebuke after their recent return to the land. The following additional short summary of the book of haggai contains facts and information taken from eastons bible dictionary. Haggai is known only from this book as well as two. If their motivation is not the fact that they are going to build an. Introduction the prophets to the returned remnant were haggai, zechariah, and malachi. Summary of the book of haggai the story of the bible.
Haggai, the writer of this short book, is mentioned in ezra 5. Haggai sought to challenge the people of god concerning their priorities. A contemporary of the prophet haggai in the early years of the persian period, zechariah shared haggais concern that the temple of jerusalem be rebuilt. The book of haggai and chapters 18 of zechariah appear to be part of the same redactional effort. The book of haggai, also called the prophecy of aggeus, the 10th of 12 old testament books that bear the names of the minor prophets. This would place the beginning of zechariahs work as a prophet around the month of november, 520 bc. The book of haggai has the combination of prophetic oracle and narrative history. And if they want a fuller and more serious answer, you can read and share this overview of haggai. From the fact that holiness is far less contagious than impurity, haggai. Biography, facts and information about haggai the following info provides a concise biography with facts and information about haggai. Go up to the mountains, bring wood and rebuild the temple, that i may be pleased with it and be glorified, says the lord.
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